


Look Ahead and Run

by AlexiaTheRook



Category: ATEEZ (Band), GOT7, Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Not K-Pop Idols, Alternate Universe - Post-Apocalypse, Anarchy, Basically Government Officials are corrupt & SKZ has had enough, Lee Felix (Stray Kids)-centric, Major Character Death isn't for any of the members of Stray Kids, Multi, Namjoon & Jungkook are only in 1st chapter, References to Attempted Rape/Non-Con, References to Blackmail, References to Corruption, References to Public Excecution, Revolution, Violence, references to blood
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-05
Updated: 2019-06-22
Packaged: 2019-12-26 16:45:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,434
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18286265
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlexiaTheRook/pseuds/AlexiaTheRook
Summary: "Poison, trap, toadstool, you can set them upI’ll survive in the end, whatever it takesI know your traps, you set them upAnd I stomp on them tougher."Felix knew all of his life that everything could be controlled as long as you had enough money. And since Felix's family was poor, his family worked hard to barely make it by while the rich sat around and reaped the rewards. It made him sick. When  Felix reaches the final straw, he vowed to bring power back to the everyday people. To make those rich Politician sleazebags pay for they did.And after meeting eight other boys who feel the same, Felix finally has his chance.To give the people back their freedom. Their hope.(Fic inspired by the MV for MIROH)





	1. The Flight

**Author's Note:**

> Huge thanks to @1080or720 on Twitter for offering to proofread & spot plot holes. This wouldn't be as polished as it is without their help! 💜
> 
> FOREWARNING.  
> This fic is a bit darker than my other fics I've written on this site as it has to do with corrupt Government Officials and Overthrowing of said corrupt Government. I do not endorse or recommend anything that has to do with overthrowing your local government. This is all meant in the good fun of story telling. Please DO NOT take inspiration from this fic to overthrow your local/national government. 
> 
> TRIGGER WARNINGS  
> Teen Rating is for References to Blood, Violence, Anarchy & Revolution, Minor References to Attempted Rape/ Non-Con, Blackmailing, and there's references to a Public Execution. If any of these make you uncomfortable please do not read!
> 
> (Mood Song for Chapter: Voices by Stray Kids & Ceasefire by for King & Country.)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> UPDATE: This now has a playlist with songs that helped inspire this fic! Go ahead and take a listen if you so desire! 
> 
> The first three are for this chapter. If you don't feel like opening the playlist, the songs are Voices by Stray Kids, Forever Rain by RM, & Home (UNDERTALE OST) by Toby Fox.
> 
> (MOOD SONGS FOR FIC: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLbdmy8EZU_E-9KFwO5AiFEm4LOfel8bPI)

  
Felix was always considered a rebellious child. Against all authority, he didn't deem 'fair'.  
  
Felix, for as long as anyone could remember, was always going against the adults in his life. Always sticking up for those he felt were being treated unfairly.  
If you asked Felix when he realized that something needed to change, he would respond with when he was 8 years old. That was when Felix first realized that the country he moved to wasn't all sunshine and roses.  
For example, when his friend's older brother suddenly went missing, and everyone acted as nothing happened. Every time little Felix would ask Jungkook about it, the twelve-year-old would shrug him off with an excuse. Felix had sensed his casualness with the situation like the brother had left for college, but he could see the hurt that was in Jungkook's eyes. It was only during a sleepover in Jungkook's treehouse a few months later, away from hovering parents, that Jungkook told Felix the truth. Jungkook revealed his older brother was taken away to a prison camp for speaking out against a government official.  
At only eight years old, Felix realized that Jungkook's brother didn't deserve that. That's when the spark was lit...  
  
  
  
At 10 years old, that spark started to catch into a small flame.  
  
It was a cool summer evening and Felix would rather have been down with Jungkook at the creek that separated their properties. Felix preferred making dams in the mud and trying to catch frogs in the evenings when it was warm. But no, Felix was instead stuck watching the rich politicians parade the streets. Fur coats, expensive convertibles, and many riches would be shown off to the city. It made Felix irritated to see. These parades were mandatory, meaning Felix HAD to be here. Had to watch these people flaunt their wealth while he thought of his parents. Both worked themselves to the bone and could barely afford to pay all the bills.  
"Why is it that they get cars and clothing worth more than an entire neighborhood of houses and not have to lift a finger? People like my parents have to work nonstop and barely have enough to get by. Why do they get all that from doing nothing and people like my parents get nothing for doing everything?" Felix thought to himself as yet another luxury Italian car drove by, decked in gold and rich accents.  
Felix decided to ask his mother the same question when they got home afterward. The only answer Felix received was a warning to never talk like that again about his country or he would be in big trouble with not only his parents but also the police.  
  
At 13 years old, Felix met Namjoon for the first time. One of Jungkook's friends, Namjoon was 19 at the time, with curly jet black hair that was shaved on the sides. Over the years Felix and Jungkook had grown apart as Jungkook wasn't able to play all the time. But on the rare occasions where neither had homework or chores, they'd sneak to the creek they built dams in when they were younger.  
They didn't catch frogs or play in the mud anymore, instead of discussing the one thing their parents forbid them to speak of. Politics. That day, Jungkook had decided to bring the elder friend to their secret meeting spot to meet Felix. Like Felix and Jungkook, Namjoon also liked to talk about politics. Specifically about how corrupt Politicians were.  
"People shouldn't be scared to talk about what their leaders are doing wrong. Leaders need to be considerate of the people they lead and be willing to admit when they're wrong. Input is good for leaders because they can learn what their flaws are and address them."  
Felix liked Namjoon and how straightforward the young adult was. Namjoon didn't edge away from these discussions as his parents did. Namjoon addressed the problem and demanded a solution that would benefit everyone.  
As the three of them talked away into the late evening about the problems with the leadership of their country, the little flame in Felix grew larger. And with that flame grew Felix's confidence.  
  
  
At 14, Felix saw Namjoon the angriest he had ever seen anyone in his life.  
After the first meeting, Jungkook and Felix started inviting Namjoon to the creek to hang out and chat with them. Namjoon had agreed right away, and they would often talk late into the night. Usually about what this country needed to do, how they should listen to the people and their needs. Then one evening at sunset, Namjoon stormed into the clearing His nostrils flaring as he sat on the ground. Felix was the only one there, as Jungkook had gotten detention at school and wouldn't be there for another half hour or so. In the shock of Namjoon's sudden appearance, Felix had dropped the book he was reading. The novel was now lying face down in the dirt as its owner's attention was directed elsewhere.  
"Namjoon? Is everything okay?" Felix asked, concern clear in his voice.  
Namjoon ran his fingers through his now bleached hair, still shaved on the sides, and let out a frustrated sigh.  
"Yeah kid, I'm fine. Just pissed is all."  
"Do you want to talk about it?"  
"Yeah. There's a piece of garbage Politician out there using his influence to try and force women into sleeping with him or they'll be executed. And, surprise surprise, the police are doing NOTHING about it. It makes me sick."  
Felix grimaced what Namjoon said, thinking about those poor women.  
"I'm with you on that one kid. It's disgusting is what it is." Namjoon retorted. "Y'know, someone should stand up to these people. They shouldn't be able to get away with doing this."   
Felix nodded his head in agreement, looking off into the woods, lost in thought. Namjoon joined him.  
  
It was then that the small flame in Felix grew a little larger, and the more he thought of it the hotter that small flame became.  
  
  
At 15, Felix had to watch one of his closest friends be publicly executed.  
Namjoon, who was 21 at the time, had tried to organize a group that would stand up to the government and calls them out on their actions against the people. Word had gotten to the police officials and Namjoon was arrested on charges for attempted treason. Felix had gone the night before with Jungkook to visit Namjoon for the last time. When they went in Namjoon gave them a weak smile, signature dimples and all.  
"Finally, a couple of friendly faces. I'm so glad to see you both!" Namjoon shot up from the bunk at the sight of his friends.  
Felix had noticed the flash of pain on Namjoon's face as he was standing up but decided not to comment on it. Namjoon had changed his hair to a dusty blonde since last time Felix had seen him, still having the sides of his head shaved. The top was no longer curly, instead of being straightened. Despite the fact death was right around the corner for him, Namjoon remained cheerful. When Jungkook had asked why Namjoon was so happy, Namjoon only flashed a smile.  
"Why should I be sad? My death won't be in vain. I'd rather be remembered for dying for what I believe in than to back down at any sign of pressure."  
Felix attempted to suck in as much as he could, not wanting to forget anything about his friend. "Felix, Jungkook, can you both promise me something?"  
Namjoon suddenly ditched the smile he had worn most of that evening as he shifted uncomfortably on the floor. Felix nodded his head as Jungkook stared at Namjoon, concern written all over his face.  
"Promise me you won't be there for the execution. Please? I couldn't bear knowing the last thing I’d see is you two upset. It would break my heart."  
Felix and Jungkook both agreed, Namjoon letting out a sigh of relief immediately afterward.  
"Thanks, guys," Namjoon said, relief obvious in his voice.  
Just like nothing had ever happened, Namjoon went back to chatting with Jungkook and Felix about their days at school. They stayed with Namjoon as long as they were allowed to. Felix tried to let himself feel somewhat normal. Like he would wake up and everything would be okay.  
Unfortunately, Felix's anxiety wasn't getting the memo...  
  
  
  
On the day of Namjoon's execution, Jungkook refused to leave his bedroom, choosing to sob his eyes out instead at the thought of losing one of his only friends.  
After leaving Namjoon's cell the previous night, Felix had decided he had had enough.  
He was leaving. For good.  
Felix had invited Jungkook to join him, to be free and not be oppressed by these tyrants any longer, but Jungkook refused.  
So here Felix was, at 15 years old, packing everything he deemed as important into a backpack and preparing to leave for good. He had grabbed a small Polaroid photo in his drawer, hidden away from nosy parents. It was a photo of himself, Jungkook, and Namjoon by the creek in his backyard a year ago. Namjoon's hair in the photo was still the curly black, dressed in a black band T-Shirt and ripped jeans. Felix smiled at the photograph, a wave of nostalgia washing over him as he tucked the Polaroid into his phone case, then zipped up his backpack and slung it onto his shoulder. He took one last look around at the room he had lived in until he was 8 years old and first moved to Korea from Australia and let out a sigh.  
"You're leaving this all behind. For what? A man who's about to die? What are you doing? Where are you going to go?"   
Felix's thoughts screamed at him, and for a moment Felix considered unpacking everything and giving up. That was until a memory had made its way to the front of his mind, one that was loud to drown out the thoughts.   
"Y'know, someone should stand up to these people. They shouldn't be able to just get away with doing this.": Namjoon's voice echoed in his head. The words he had said then were still as fresh in Felix's mind as when Namjoon first said them.  
Felix realized, at that moment, that Namjoon wouldn't be the one to stop these people, but Felix could. Felix would.  
With renewed motivation, Felix adjusted the pack on his back and opened the door to his room. His parents were gone, most likely at the execution. Felix's father was never fond of Namjoon and the amount of influence he had on his son. Felix honestly wouldn't be surprised if his father got a small bit of joy from Namjoon's death, that the man couldn't influence his son any longer.  
Disgusted at the thought, Felix left the note saying he had left for good onto the kitchen counter. Then he went to the door and swung it open, the sun and fresh air coming into the house. It was too beautiful of a day for execution in Felix's opinion, especially for the execution of such a person like Namjoon.  
"Well, at least I won't be walking in the rain or snow..." Felix thought to himself as he walked off towards the road leading out of town. Unfortunately, that road led to right by Main Street, where the execution would be taking place. Felix took as many back alleys and alternate pathways as he could, wanting to keep his promise to Namjoon.   
It was only until he was a few miles away from Main Street that Felix heard the gunshot go off. His eyes started to well up with tears at the realization his friend was now dead, his blood most likely staining the asphalt of the main road. Thinking of it made Felix feel both like emptying the contents of his stomach and cursing any and every deity he could think of.  
Muffling a sob, Felix adjusted the backpack slung over his shoulder and began dashing away from the source of the gunshot towards the road out of the capital, away from everything he had once known. The more distance he put between himself and that place, the better.  
As Felix ran, tears streaming down his face, the flame grew hotter.  
At 15 years old, Felix vowed to do what Namjoon failed to do. He vowed to bring power back to the people and to take those greedy pigs down.  
  
  
At 16, on Felix's birthday, it had been exactly three months since Felix left home.  
About 100 miles away from the city he once called home, trying to put as much distance between him and that dreaded place.  
Felix felt he'd been doing somewhat well for himself on his own. He'd learned how to outrun nosy police officers, which churches give out free food and supplies, what places were good to hide in, what people to avoid, and to tell when the weather was going to be severe.   
It was currently September, and Felix was walking when the rain suddenly started coming down in sheets.  
"Really? Right now of all times? This is my last pair of clean clothes and I can't afford to wash it. I was hoping to at least get two more days out of these clothes..." Felix whined to himself as he around at the nearest buildings on the street. One of them had a sign on the door saying ‘A Place For Those Who Have Strayed’. It looked like a coffeehouse, harmless enough from a first glance. Deciding that it was probably a better alternative to the harsh weather he was currently in, Felix dashed the door.  
As soon as he was inside, Felix started wringing out his now soaked t-shirt as the strong scent of coffee beans wafted through the air. A young man behind the counter glanced his way as he heard the chime above the door go off.   
"What can I help you with?" The dusty brown-haired man asked as he went back to making some sort of beverage, Felix assumed it to be a coffee.  
"I was wondering if I could stay in here until the rain lets up? I can't walk when it's raining like that..." Felix trailed off as he attempted to squeeze as much of the rainwater from his hair as he possibly could.  
"Of course! My name is Woojin, by the way." Woojin smiled at him with a large toothy grin, "Do you want something to drink to warm you up? My treat!" He went back to making the beverage as Felix finished wringing out his hair.  
"Uhh sure. If your boss is okay with it..." Felix combed his damp bangs out of his face as Woojin chuckled.  
"Well, the owner shouldn't have an issue with it, as I'm the owner and I'm okay with it. Besides, it’s usually dead this time of day. Will be for a few more hours now actually."   
Woojin placed the mug with the now finished drink on the counter as Felix walked up. Woojin smiled at him and added, "My only condition is that you tell me how you ended up here. I know pretty much everyone in town and I've never seen you before. You look like you've had it rough."  
Woojin grabbed another cup from the stack and began to make another drink for himself as Felix took a tentative sip. It was the best thing Felix had tasted for a long time, and the warm drink made the heat return to his body.  
"Are you sure? It's a long story..." Felix trailed off as he took another sip of the delicious drink. Woojin hummed as he focused on getting the milk to the proper temperature.  
"I'm sure. We have about 3 hours until school lets out and the next rush starts, so we have plenty of time." Woojin stated as he finished his beverage and sat down at the stool he kept behind the counter.  
"Well..." Felix started as he took another swig of the drink.   
  
About an hour later, Felix told Woojin everything he could think of. Felix told him about his best friend Jungkook and how they met, how they played together. He talked about the parades they were forced to watch. About how he met Namjoon, how Namjoon had inspired him and Jungkook with the spark of rebellion, and Namjoon's execution. Felix started tearing up a bit at the retelling of Namjoon's death as he grabbed his phone. "The night before Namjoon died, he told me something. 'Promise me you won't be there for the execution. Please? I couldn't bear knowing the last thing I’d see is you two upset. It would break my heart.' Jungkook and I promised not to be there, but I realized I couldn't be there. Not after what they did."  
Felix let out a long sigh and continued, "I left home. Namjoon always wanted to be the one to cause change. To take down those... Those pigs, and show them the people are more than just cheap labor, than just someone to brag to. That they have no right to treat people like they do." Felix ran a hand through his hair, having mostly dried while he was talking. Felix fished out the Polaroid of Namjoon, Jungkook, and himself out of his phone case. Felix had tried to keep it as undamaged as possible, it was the only thing he wanted to keep from his life before. He handed it to Woojin as the rain still came down strong outside. Woojin glanced at the photo and passed it back to Felix, only nodding his head.  
"So does this mean you currently don't have a place to live?" Woojin asked as he cleared the mugs off the counter and went to put them into the sink.  
"Yep. I have been nomadic for about three months now. I haven't wanted to stop and stay anywhere and unfortunately, they don't give apartments to 16-year-olds." Felix stated as he attempted to untangle his now shaggy hair with his fingers.  
"Well, would you be okay with staying with me and my friends? We have an apartment we share that's right on the second floor. You'd have to share a room of course, as we currently have eight people in a two-bedroom apartment. It's better than nothing though." Woojin gave him a little smile then continued, "You'll find a lot of us have similar stories to yours. We've all been strays at one point or another."  
Felix's eyes widened with surprise, "Wait?" Woojin nodded his head as Felix gasped.  
"Yep! You just need to help keep the place clean and maybe have to help take orders at the coffee shop when it gets too busy."  
"Thank you so much!" Felix exclaimed as he grabbed his backpack from by the door. Woojin pointed to a door by the counter as he started scrubbing dishes.  
"There's a shower up there. First door on the left when you enter the hall at the top of the stairs. Everyone is either at school or work so you'll have it all to yourself until Jisung gets back from school." Felix nodded his head to show he heard Woojin as he opened the door and dashed up the stairs. True to his word, Felix found the bathroom where Woojin said and went in. Felix stripped off his now semi-wet clothes and climbed into the shower where a hot spray of water was waiting for him.  
For the first time in months, Felix finally felt like he was where he belonged.  
Like he was finally home.

 

One hot shower and a change of warm clothing from Woojin later, Felix felt better than he had in months. He was currently laying on the worn couch in the apartment, staring up at the ceiling. The scent of coffee was still somewhat strong from downstairs. Woojin said he would be up in a few minutes, as soon as everything was taken care of downstairs and put away.  
It was about 6 PM last time Felix checked and he was getting antsy. On one hand, Felix wanted to explore the place he would be calling home from now on, but he also didn't want to go without Woojin in case there was something he wasn't supposed to get into. He fidgeted a bit more on the couch before hearing the door creak open. Assuming it was Woojin, Felix sat up and glanced over the back of the couch.  
The person staring back at him was NOT Woojin...   
Quite the opposite.  
Unlike Woojin, who had dusty brown hair and was somewhat taller than Felix, this newcomer was quite a bit different. His hair was a much darker shade of brown, and he seemed to be about the same height as Felix. He had doe-like eyes, and as Felix stared he realized the boy reminded him of a frightened deer.  
Choosing to break the silence, Felix decided to break the silence.  
"Uhh... Hello." Felix greeted.  
The boy dropped his backpack and screamed.  
"So much for first impressions..." Felix thought to himself as he covered his ears.


	2. The Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Lots of thorny vines, need to push down my cuts  
> But there’s no time to rest  
> I’m alright, I’m holding on and I keep on going  
> I just need to look ahead and run."
> 
> After about six months of living with eight other boys, all who have suffered at the hands of the rich like he had, Felix decides he's had enough. They want change, and since no one else will step up, they'll be the ones to bring it. No matter the cost.
> 
> (Chapter Mood Songs: Mikrokosmos by BTS, YESTODAY by NCT U, Insomnia by Stray Kids.)
> 
> (FIC MOOD PLAYLIST: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLbdmy8EZU_E-9KFwO5AiFEm4LOfel8bPI)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (UPDATE: 6/30/19 I added a little bit more into the conversation with Seungmin that will have significance later on. I recommend re-reading that section if you did already so that blurb can still be seen.)
> 
> I am so sorry this took forever! I was in Missouri when I wrote the first chapter getting work training, then when I got home I got writer's block. I also had to suddenly move, got swamped with work, and had some issues with Insomnia and some worries that were eating at me. I'm better now, but it was just a hectic few months... 
> 
> I was writing this partly at a work conference as well, and my beta reader had something going on where they didn't have good service/wifi so there was a delay there as well.
> 
> Thank you for all the love and support on this fic! It means so much to me that you all liked it. It's now my most popular fic and it helped encourage me to write more about KPop groups. Thanks for the support and for keeping me going! Hopefully you like the chapter!
> 
> Huge thanks again to Patri (aka @1080or720 on Twitter) for Beta-ing and helping encouraging me in my blockage.

  
_Six Months Later…_

The coffee shop was alive and buzzing with people as Felix dashed around, attempting to bus tables. The rainy March weather was somewhat chillier than normal, and the shop was full of people attempting to warm themselves up with a cup of coffee.

Most of the other members of their little group, that Felix had finally adjusted to living with, were either at their jobs or school. That only left Woojin, Felix, and Minho to take care of everything.  
Over the past few months, Felix had gotten adjusted to his new life. He would go and work with Woojin downstairs in the coffee shops or get the upstairs apartment cleaned before the younger members would come home. Then he'd work with them on homework and they'd teach him what he missed in school while he was running away.

Even though there would be a lot of work to do, Felix loved it. He felt more at home with these people than he ever did with his parents in Seoul. Here he felt like he could express himself more without his parents controlling his style or his schedule. For the first time in his life, Felix felt like a bird that was at last free. He escaped his cage and could finally fly.

Being free did have a cost, however. As Felix was discovering now.  
Currently, Felix was dashing around the coffee shop, clearing dishes and taking orders while Minho and Woojin scrambled to keep up with the coffee orders. They had a rush hit about an hour ago, and it showed no signs of slowing down. It was currently Friday afternoon and one of the downsides of being the only coffee shop in town was that it was the only place people could go to study or have a meeting with a cup of coffee. Meaning that when there was a rush, there were a TON of people...

Since Minho and Woojin were the only two who knew how to make coffee, Felix was the one left scrambling around trying to get people in and out as quickly as possible. Changbin would be back in a half-hour to help Felix after his shift at the record store was over, and Hyunjin would be back in an hour and a half to take over his shift.

"Only a little longer Felix, then you can rest." Felix thought to himself as he set his stack of mugs into the sink with a loud thud, startling Minho.

"For the love of whatever deity is out there, can we PLEASE just switch to disposable cups? It would make my job way easier..." Felix whined to Minho as he dumped the mugs into the sink. Minho rolled his eyes as Woojin piped in.

"Felix, for the last time. We are NOT switching to paper cups. It's bad for the environment."

Felix grunted in annoyance as he began scrubbing the coffee staining from the bottom of the mugs.

Yep. It was going to be a LONG day for Felix...

  
Two hours of scrambling around a coffee shop and scrubbing dishes had taken a toll on Felix. Currently, he was exhausted, only having enough energy to take a hot shower and dress before flopping face-first into the worn living room couch. He had lain there for quite a while, breathing in the familiar scent of the couch as he attempted to regain his energy. He emptied his mind and allowed himself to only focus on his breathing. The rhythm of Felix's own breathing in and out soothed him and started to lull him to sleep.

Felix's peace was short-lived however, as a heavy blob suddenly plopped itself onto Felix's back.

Too tired to form sentences, Felix reached behind and tried to swat whatever it was on his back. As he was doing this, he heard a fit of giggles coming from whatever was on his back.

"Hey, Felix!" A head of curly dark brown hair popped into the edge of his vision. It was the same kid that screamed at Felix his first day here, Felix had since learned his name was Jisung and was about the same age as he was. The two had become pretty close in the time Felix had been here, often even sharing the same bed and cuddling when they were upset or stressed.  
It was something they all did with each other at some point or another, and Felix was quite used to it at this point.

“Felix!” Jisung yelled, poking Felix in the face, “Are you okay? You look exhausted, dude.”

Felix let out a sigh, lamenting the loss of silence. “I'm about ready to sleep and never wake up again. I've been on my feet for the past 5 hours and everything is sore.” Felix grumbled as he mustered enough energy to turn onto his side and face Jisung.

“Do you want cuddles?” Jisung asked as he opened his arms and smiled. Felix nodded his head and Jisung wasted no time. Jisung was in Felix's arms and burying his head into Felix's chest before he could even blink.

Felix focused on Jisung's and his breathing and the warmth he felt from the other. With the soothing aura surrounding them, Felix felt the most relaxed he'd felt all day. The last thing he remembered before being lulled to sleep was the warm breaths against his neck from Jisung's breathing.

 

One thing Felix enjoyed quite a bit was when the nine of them had the next day off. The group of them would collect blankets and pillows from around the house and assemble them into a pile in the living room. They would then proceed to sort out whatever they had found and created a giant blanket tent to sleep under for the night. They'd usually do it on Saturday nights, as Woojin liked to sleep in on Sunday mornings and wouldn't open the shop until noon.

Saturday nights were the days that Felix looked forward to most in the week. It reminded Felix of when he was a kid, and he'd sleep over with Jungkook and Namjoon and talk about everything and anything late into the night. It was a time when they had gotten to know each other and talk about their lives, a time to grow closer. Felix had missed it in the time he was on the run, and to have it back made it feel like home.

On this particular day, Felix had decided he was going to tell everyone the whole story. Felix hadn't told the others, other than Woojin, his entire story. They only knew that he had run away from home and lived on his own before joining them. Woojin never pressed him to share it, saying it was something Felix could share with the others when he felt the time was right. The rest of the group had respected Felix's privacy on the mater, and for that Felix was grateful.

The group could make guesses however, as often nightmares would plague Felix's sleep. The occasional mumbling about Namjoon could be heard from Felix while he was sleeping, and on rare occasions, Felix would awaken from a nightmare crying.   
Often Chan would be the one to comfort Felix, as Chan was, unfortunately, up late due to insomnia. Chan never asked questions, just comforting the boy when he was the most distraught. There were plenty of times where Felix had considered telling the others, but either the timing was bad or he would chicken out. Tonight, however, Felix attempted to muster enough courage to finally be able to tell them. Felix was tired of keeping this baggage from them, and he wanted to be honest. So, swallowing down his fear, Felix tried to keep himself calm while he collected any blankets with Jisung.

Once all of the bedding was collected and assembled into a blanket fortress in the main room, everyone climbed under the sheets and began to settle in for the night.

"Uhh, guys?" Felix asked, unsure with himself. The urge to shy away yet again was strong, but Felix pushed it down. He was determined to get this over with.

"Whatcha need, Felix?" Chan asked as he passed Woojin a pillow.

"... I wanted to tell you all something. About my past."

"Felix. Are you sure? I know this is tough for you to talk about, you don't need to tell the rest of us if you aren't comfortable with it." Woojin said gently as he set the pillow Chan passed him onto the floor in front of him.

"I've been keeping this to myself for too long. I trust you all enough to tell you." Felix let out a sigh as the rest got settled in, ready to give their full undivided attention to the boy.

Felix cleared his throat and began telling his story from the very beginning.

"Well... It all started when I was eight years old when I first moved to South Korea..."

  
By the end of his dramatic retelling, Felix had already burst into tears twice when retelling about Jungkook and Namjoon. Woojin had gone to rub the poor boy's back as he insisted on continuing.

Felix had told them everything. From moving to Korea at 8 years old to the day of Namjoon's execution and him running away.

“Namjoon said something to me once I'll never forget,” Felix wiped the tears from his eyes as he spoke, his eyes to the floor. “ ‘Someone should stand up to these people. They shouldn't be able to get away with doing this.’ Namjoon said that about those politicians, the ones who parade around their wealth and do nothing for the people while they slave away and are barely able to make enough for food. A year later, they put a bullet in his head because he wanted them to take care of the people they governed. They ended his life over him wanting the people to not have to worry about feeding their families and having enough for food.”

Felix sniffled as more tears escaped his eyes, Woojin rubbing small circles into his back as Felix attempted to ground himself.

“Deep breaths Lix. Deep breaths. You can do this, and you can do it on your own.”

The room was silent, besides the occasional sniffle from Felix. Even though he was surrounded by people, he had never felt so alone.  
“You don't have to do this alone you know.” Jisung's voice rang out in the silence as two arms circled Felix's torso from his left side, and a face nuzzled into his neck.

More arms circled Felix's waist from behind. “Felix.” Chan's voice softly stated, “You're never alone. Not when you're here. We'll always be here to support you, no matter what you've done or what's happened to you. We all have done something or had something happen to us and felt like we couldn't be loved; like we had to handle it on our own.”

Jeongin piped up from across the room, slowly making his way over to Felix to put an arm around him, “We don't want you to handle it on your own. We're here to help you. Whether that be from just giving you a place to stay, talking through your problems, or even helping you find a way to cope with your grief. We'll always be here for you, no matter what.”

And at that moment, surrounded by people who cared for and loved him, Felix felt safer and more loved than he had felt in years.

“Y'know Felix. You aren't the only one to suffer at the hands of those scumbags.”

Felix glanced up from his breakfast at Chan, who had just broken the silence. At the moment they were the only two awake, the other seven were still asleep in the bundle of blankets.

“Pardon?” Felix asked as he shoveled a fork full of eggs into his mouth.

“Last night. You said you had suffered so much from those politicians. You aren't the only one.”

Chan paused to take a bite of his food before continuing, allowing Felix time to swallow what he had in his mouth.

“I was about 12 when my parents and I were on vacation in Korea from Australia. Police busted down our hotel room door in the middle of the night and took my parents and siblings away. No warrant, no suspicion, no nothing. They just dragged them away and left me here. In a foreign country, with a language I could barely speak, as a 12-year-old kid. I ran into Woojin when I was about 16 years old. He and his family took me in and we both took over for his parents when they retired.”

Felix listened to every word Chan said, surprised at how similar their stories were. As he spoke, Felix wondered how many people had suffered at the hands of these Sleazebags. They were so easily persuaded by money that they didn't notice the people they harmed around them.

"Y'know Felix. We all have some sort of screwed up reason that we're here. Maybe someday everyone will be comfortable enough with you that you'll know."

As he munched on his breakfast, Felix wondered if there was a way to take back control. He was annoyed at how easily these men had others wrapped around their fingers, and all because they had a larger amount of won than most.

It wasn't the money itself that made Felix mad, it was the way these politicians used it to only help themselves at the cost of others. It made him sick.

Namjoon's words came to him at that moment, and never had Felix agreed more with that statement than now.

  
It was an extremely rare day where the cafe was dead. Woojin, not wanting to keep anyone around to do nothing, had sent Felix back to the apartment early. Most of their group were either at school or off somewhere else, so Felix had the apartment to himself.

He decided to go lay on the couch and nap for a while, only to realize the living room was already occupied by someone else.

And that someone else was Minho. Who was watching anime.

“Uhh, am I interrupting something here?”

Minho shot up from the couch, blanket flying up along with him. “Oh my god, Felix! You scared the crap outta me!” He clasped a hand to his chest as Felix giggled.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you like that.” Felix plopped down on the couch as he spoke. “Whatcha watching?”

“Watching anime. There’s this one I’ve heard about from coworkers at the bookstore for forever called Kotoura-san it’s about a kid who can read minds. Since I’m off today and have nothing to do I figured I’d give it a shot.” Minho brushed his bangs out of his face. “Wanna watch with me? I’m only a few minutes into the first episode.”

Felix nodded his head and Minho smiled. Tossing him a side of the blanket, Minho turned his attention to the television and Felix did the same. They watched mostly in silence, Minho attempting to keep up with the plot and Felix keeping up with the rapid-fire subtitles. It wasn’t until the main protagonist’s mother began to leave that Felix noticed something was wrong. Minho seemed to tense up and his breathing quickened.

After a tense moment between the mother and bright-haired protagonist daughter, the mother slapped the protagonist across the face. Felix glanced out of the corner of his eyes to see Minho sobbing into his arm, his body shaking with every inhale. Felix snatched the remote off the coffee table and paused the show, rubbing small circles into Minho's back.

"Hey. Are you okay?" Felix asked, concern lacing his voice.

"Yeah. That just hit a little too close to home is all." Minho attempted to rub the tears from his eyes, slightly embarrassed about being caught crying.

"Do… Do you want to talk about it?" Minho suddenly tensed up at the question, startling Felix. "You don't have to if you don't want to! It's okay if you're not comfortable sharing it with me."

Minho relaxed under Felix's touch, breathing deeply in an attempt to calm himself down. " It's okay, you deserve to know. You told everyone yours, it's only fair to tell you mine."

He took a deep breath before continuing. "I grew up in what would be considered a broken family. My mom left when I was young, too young to remember her. My dad was a raging alcoholic and would abuse me a lot, for no reason in particular. One time he got so mad he smashed a glass bottle into my stomach and the glass got caught in my stomach. I ended up having to go in for surgery to get it out and I have a scar from it."

Minho lifted his shirt shyly to show Felix, a long scar running along one side of his stomach was visible. "Because of that, we were even more in debt. Dad couldn't afford to pay it off between the bills and soju, so he sold me off. I think I was about 13, maybe 14 at the time." Minho adjusted his shirt back down to cover the scar as he spoke.

"I ended up being sold to some politician in Seoul. If living with my dad was a nightmare, living with him was hell. He'd flirt with me, despite the fact he was easily double my age at the time. He'd punish me harshly over the slightest mistake, he would touch me when I didn't want to be touched. He'd make me sleep in the same bed as him. It was easily the worst time of my life."

He sighed, voice beginning to crack at the possibility of crying again. Felix went back to rubbing his shoulder, comforting him in any way he could.

"It got so bad that I even considered dying. I thought that it would be better than living through whatever that was. So I'd intentionally mess up, hoping to drive him over the edge so he'd kill me. He never did though, he would just throw me around a bit and then lock me up in a room for a few hours. I was 16, almost 17 then."

Felix sat there listening in shock, "Minho. I am so sorry you had to go through this." He wrapped Minho in a hug, the older resting his head on Felix's shoulder.

"It does get better though, at some point someone had left a door opens to the outside. I knew it was only going to get worse once I was legally an adult in a year, so I snuck out the door and ran for my life. Never looked back. I ended up stumbling into Chan while I was running, and he offered to let me stay with him and his group until I could get on my feet. That was a little over 5 months before you showed up."

Felix rubbed Minho's back as he let the information sink in. It was a lot for Felix to process in so little time.

"Are… are you disgusted by me, Felix?" Minho didn't move from Felix's shoulder, but Felix could tell he was hesitant about staying there.

"Of course not Minho. I'm just thinking about how hard it was for you to go through that on your own. I could never be disgusted by you Minho. Ever." Felix emphasized as he resumed rubbing Minho's back. Minho leaned into Felix's shoulder happily.

"Can we watch some other anime? Like Blend S? Or Kobayashi Dragon Maid? I don't feel like finishing this one." Minho asked as he snuggled into Felix more, wanting some affection after crying for so long.

"Of course we can," Felix replied as he reached to grab the remote, already content to find something else to watch.

A few days later, Felix relaxed on the rooftop after his shift, a bottle of water in hand. He had just finished his shift for the day and it was far too hot indoors for Felix's tastes. That day there was a rare heatwave, and the AC was out in the building.

This was the main reason why he was relaxing in the late evening breeze, watching the few cars drive by below as he sipped at his water. Felix was so absorbed in his task that he didn't even notice the door to the roof had creaked open and someone had set next to him until the person cleared their throat.

Felix whipped his head up, startled by the sudden intrusion. Seungmin looked him back in the eyes.

"Oh sorry, Felix! I didn't mean to startle you." Seungmin said, a camera in his hands. " I was just coming up to the roof to do some photography of the city. I get some pretty cool shots around this time. I'm not bugging you, am I?"

"Oh, not at all!" Felix replied, going back to sipping at his water. "I'm just going to be enjoying the breeze, don't mind me."

Wordlessly, Seungmin brought the camera closer to his face to adjust a few settings before going to taking photos. He had taken a few shots of the cars and streetlights below, before moving on to photographing other things he saw, occasionally stopping to show Felix his shots for a second opinion.

"You know, I've always wanted to do photography full time. It's something I've loved doing since I was young. Unfortunately, it wasn't something my parents were fond of me doing." Seungmin had suddenly spoken up in the middle of showing Felix some of his old shots.

The confusion was written all over Felix's face, "Wait, why wouldn't they want you to? Your stuff is fantastic!" Felix asked as he gestured to a shot of a rusty sword leaning up against what was left of a crumbling wall.

"Well, my father wanted me to follow in his footsteps. To become a politician like he was. He saw photography as a distraction from Politics, so he tried to keep me from doing it as much as he could. My mother would side with him when I'd talk to her, so I never really spoke to her about it. At one point he smashed my camera to keep me from doing photography. I ended up just getting a new camera and kept it hidden from him. I'd take the long way home from school and do photography at parks and fields and such. That's how I met Chan."

Seungmin paused for a moment to take a few photographs of the last traces of sunset before continuing, "We talked every day I was there. I told him about what happened with my father and he encouraged me to leave. He offered me a place here, so I went home and packed up what I wanted to take and left. Never looked back. I started going to school here with Jisung and Jeongin, and do as much photography as I want to."

"Did your parents ever try to find you? It seems like you were pretty high profile to just vanish." Felix asked, adjusting himself on the ledge.

"Nope. I left a note saying I was leaving and not coming back. I haven't heard from them since. I assume they're just pretending I don't exist. They did the same thing when my sister ran away to be with the gardener." Seungmin shrugged his shoulders and swept his bangs out of his face. "They've only seen the two of us as bargaining chips for power, I'm not surprised they didn't chase me down, to be honest with you."

Felix wiped the sweat off his forehead and nodded his head in understanding.

Seungmin looked out to the horizon one last time, the last bits of purple we're fading from the sky into the inky darkness. "We should head inside, Woojin is probably making dinner for all of us."

  
Felix sat up in his bed, the clock on his side table reading 2:05 am.  
No matter how hard he tried, Felix couldn't get himself to sleep. Even with exhaustion dragging at his body from the eight-hour shift he worked. He couldn't stop thinking about what everyone told him, each one going through and opening up to him in their way at some point. Even though their life stories were so different, Felix had noticed one thing in common with everyone's stories.

Everyone's lives had been affected negatively by the people in power.

And the thought of that made Felix want to throw something into the nearest wall. These people vowed to protect the public but were too busy putting their comfort over the needs of the people. And when people were upset, they were executed or bullied into silence.

He suddenly thought of Namjoon, whose only crime was thinking differently than everyone else. They put a bullet into the head of someone who was barely an adult because he disagreed with how they ran the country.

Begrudgingly, Felix rolled himself out of his bed. Any chance of him sleeping now was mostly gone, so he figured he'd at least do something productive.

"Maybe a walk would do me some good." Felix thought to himself as he rubbed at his eyes. He crept out of the room as quietly as he could, careful to not wake any of his roommates, before heading into the kitchen.

"Hopefully Seungmin doesn't mind me raiding his snack stash..."

Felix stepped into the doorway of the kitchen, surprised to see Chan at the table with Woojin. The two paused whatever conversation to look at Felix, so Felix walked over to the cabinet and began to rummage through the cabinet.

"Uhhh, Felix? What are you doing?" Chan asked as Felix grabbed a bag of ramen chips from Seungmin's stash.

"I couldn't sleep, so I'm raiding the cabinet for food. What are you up to?" Felix munched on the chips as he spoke.

"Well Chan never really sleeps, and I had some work to do for the business, so we're working together on finances," Woojin explained as Chan mumbled about some incorrect math.

"Oh, well don't mind me. I'm just gonna sit here and eat." Felix hopped up onto the counter and resumed munching on his chips.

"Felix, it's two in the morning. You shouldn't be eating chips." Chan said as he jotted down some numbers onto a notepad in front of him, "It isn't really good for your stomach to eat this early, and Seungmin will kill you if he finds out you stole his snacks again."

"Well first off, Seungmin wouldn't hurt me because I'm too adorable." Felix smiled and made a heart with his hands to emphasize his point before continuing, "Secondly, it was either I sit and stew in bed over how unfair life is or I steal Seungmin's chips at 2 am. It wasn't a hard choice for me, because these chips are fantastic."

"Why are you contemplating the fairness of life at 2 am?" Woojin asked puzzledly as Chan snorted.

"Honestly, who isn't?" Chan retorted as he scribbled down more numbers. "That's why I'm up at two in the morning in the first place."

"Okay, fair. But Felix, do you wanna talk about it? It may help." Woojin shot a glare at Chan, then looking to Felix.

Felix munched on a chip as he thought, then nodded his head.  
"Sure. What's the worst that could happen?"

  
"The worst thing is that we stay up an extra three hours and plan a mini-revolution…" Felix thought to himself as Seungmin, who woke up about an hour previous, was sketching blueprints up of various alleyways and streets in the main sector.

"So if I remember correctly, and I usually do remember these well, this street has an alleyway that leads to here…" Seungmin took a swig of black tea, courtesy of Woojin, as he gestured to a spot on the crudely made map. "It'd be a perfect place to hide and watch the parade go by, and then to hijack it when the chance comes up."

Felix brushed his bangs out of his face to get a better look as Woojin spoke up. "But those parades are huge, there's no way that the nine of us are going to be able to take down a parade with security THAT big…"

"I know some people who'd be willing to help. We're all part of an Anti-Big Government group and they've been talking about planning a revolution for a while now." Changbin butted into the conversation as he walked in. He grabbed Seungmin's mug and took a large sip of tea, to Seungmin’s horror, and handed it back before plopping down onto Felix's lap.

"Wait, hold up… You've been part of a group that engages in illegal activity for how long now without telling us?" Chan asked as he poured himself a fourth cup of coffee.

"... That is classified information. Point is, I know people who can get you the manpower you need." Changbin stated.

Seungmin rolled his eyes as he grabbed the notepad again and began jotting numbers down.

"I'll have to crunch some numbers, but I think this can work… We may be able to pull this off."

Felix smiled. Maybe Namjoon's words would finally come true...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you all think? Let me know either on the comments or on Twitter/Instagram! AlexiaTheRook is the tag on all sites.
> 
> Also, I had to add an extra chapter because the hype up to their revolution was supposed to be combined with the revolution, but it was already almost 5k words for just that portion and I didn't want to overwhelm my poor beta reader... Hopefully you all enjoy this next chapter coming up!

**Author's Note:**

> What did you all think?
> 
> This was a little reward for myself. I thought up the idea as I was working on a paper for a class I need for my work, I had MIROH playing on loop for motivation. I didn't see anyone wrote this kind of fic so I figured I'd do it myself. This also wasn't supposed to be a multi chapter fic but it's currently 1AM and I really want to sleep so I'll write the rest later. This is all the angsty backstory for Felix, gotta get it out of the way now. 
> 
> Also, if you all have Twitter or Instagram, come talk SKZ, Fanfiction & KPop with me on there if you'd like! @AlexiaTheRook is the tag!


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